Prosecutors won't seek death penalty in baby's 2013 killing

BATON ROUGE - Baton Rouge prosecutors won't seek the death penalty against a man accused of inflicting fatal injuries to his girlfriend's nearly 11-month-old daughter after the girl refused to eat grits.

District Attorney Hillar Moore III said the decision to remove the death penalty as a possible sentence for 28-year-old Larry Leflore was made primarily out of concern for the emotional well-being of the girl's brother, who was six when Aaliyah Heard died. Moore says capital cases' lengthy appeal processes can be painful for witnesses.

Leflore is charged with first-degree murder and second-degree cruelty to a juvenile in connection with Heard's 2013 death.

The children's mother, Ashley Heard, was convicted of second-degree murder in August in her daughter's death. She was sentenced Tuesday to life in prison.